2026 Home office AV setup
This is an update from my 2023 post, as I’ve added some equipment and the camera I use is discontinued.
I realy enjoy using the Elgato Prompter for video calls. If you’re anything like me, you probably are typically looking at your own preview in a video call, and usually end up looking at like the corner of the screen instead of at the webcam lens, and to the person on the other end, its a suboptimal experience. Everyone knows this and kind of goes along with it, but personally I want to subtly communicate that person on the other end of the call has my attention.
The prompter is very easy to set up, it includes mounting rings that screw into your camera’s lens thread, and its light enough to sit the end.
New Equipment
| Category | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Camera Arm | Wave Mic Arm LP | ~$100 |
| Teleprompter | Elgato Prompter | ~$300 |
| USB-C Extension cable | 6ft USB-c extender | ~$8 |
| USB-C Hub | Hub for camera control, HDMI input, Prompter | ~$45 |
| Short USB-C cables x2 | USB-C for camera control, prompter | ~$14 |
| New equipment total | ~$467 |
Camera & Lens
The a7C is now discontinued, and the a7Cii costs almost 50% more than I got my a7C for ($2300 vs $1600). I’m sure the a7Cii is great, but if you’re looking for a similar setup and wanting to spend less, I’d recommend a different camera. The cheapest Sony full frame right now at B&H is the A7iii at $1700, but there are APS-C (smaller sensor or “crop sensor”) Sonys that fit E-mount lenses like the ZV-E10 or the a6100 for as low as $700.
If you go with a crop sensor camera, I’d also recommend a different lens than I bought. I found that I really like a 35mmm lens for the distance from the camera, field of view, compression, natural background blur, and lack of distortion for video calls. (I recommend 2 minutes of this YouTube if you want to get an idea of focal length and how it affects an image.) I’d recommend a crop Sony 35mm lens (Sony E 35mm f/1.8 OSS Lens) which comes in around $550.
I tried a 50mm portrait lens, and while I liked the compression/distortion better than the 35mm, I had to have it much farther back from my face to the point that it made using the prompter not really worth it.
Microphone
I’ve not been using the Yeti mic for video calls because it is too good. It picks up background noise that I don’t want, and have found that my AirPods do a much better job for day-to-day calls. I like the Yeti for audio recordings, but wouldn’t recommend it for a daily driver.
Layout Diagram
